Arts Watch. Rock review.

Vans Tour A Wet, Wild Party

July 20, 1997|By Kevin McKeough. Special to the Tribune.

As a steady, if no longer torrential, rain fell on the parking lot of the United Center Friday afternoon and the Mighty Mighty Bosstones roared through "Numbered Days," one could see steam rising from the mosh pit of exuberant teenagers.

The image captured the mix of chaos, jubilation and precipitation--lots and lots of precipitation--that marked the Chicago stop of the Vans Warped Tour '97. In the end, there were some silver linings in the third annual installment of the punk music and outdoor recreation festival, even if dark clouds derailed many promising aspects of the outdoor event.

The weather prevented appearances by more than half of the 29 scheduled bands, most of whom were to have performed on the event's three auxiliary stages. The rain also thwarted planned demonstrations by stunt bicyclists, skateboarders and in-line skaters.

Still, there were some strong performances on the main stage, unfortunately the only one shielded from the rain.

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones' animated set provided the water-logged proceedings with a much-needed dose of good cheer, as they pumped out shifty ska rhythms punctuated by fat, juicy horn parts. Dicky Barrett's grizzly-bear baritone and Nate Albert's punk guitar blasts gave the music a rough-hewn spin, while backing vocalist Ben Carr's loose-limbed dancing added to the festive air.

Riding on their current hit, "The Impression That I Get," the Bosstones were the day's big draw, but no band is safe sharing the bill with Social Distortion. The band compressed melodies into songs with the streamlined force of a freight train as Mike Ness sang in a tough-guy rasp and played searing lead guitar.

Ness' fine, regret-tinged songs, however, didn't rouse the young crowd as much as the exhortations of Pennywise, who mixed roaring vocals, crunching guitar and pummeling roller coaster rhythms. Singer Jim Lindberg stalked the stage like a panther as he tore through teen-power anthems like "Rules" and "Fight Till You Die."

In a show of punk solidarity, Pennywise ended their set by handing over their instruments to the Descendents. Opening with a pair of Black Flag covers, the group proceeded with their patented mix of vintage punk and bittersweet melodies, courtesy of Milo Aukerman, Ph.D.

The Suicide Machines emphasized thrash at the expense of the hyper-speed ska that is their real strength.

The closing of the auxiliary stages may have been a blessing in disguise, given the clashing overlap of bands playing too close to each other early in the day. Limp Bizkit's ugly mix of thrash, funk and rap collided with Sugar Ray's better version of the same formula, and Lag Wagon's passable Green Day-style punk competed with Less Than Jake's frenetic, horn-drenched ska.